Challenged Love

Chapter 33

The stale, chilly air filled my lungs in a rush as I abruptly woke up from my sleep. As I shot up, I struggled against a coughing fit, and my back ached as a sharp pain ran down my spine. I found it hard to believe I really slept after what happened. Maybe I had passed out, but I wasn't too concerned considering the other circumstances. I sat up on my thin, twin-sized mattress, pulling the only ragged blanket I had over my head to hide from the cold that gnawed at my skin. In the cell to my left, Lara lie wide awake, staring up at the ceiling. Tears stained her cheeks, yet her expression was blank and unmoving. Blaise remained in the cell to my right, slumped against the wall with his legs spread out in front of him like a rag doll.

I wasn't sure how long we had been here. It could have been minutes, hours, days. The night was all a blur, a rush of chaos that went as fast as it came. My feet had left the ground. Black smoke clouded my vision. I tried to struggle against the Death Eater's grip, but to no avail. Then there was that moment of peace when the world slips from your grip and all you know is nothing. Maybe death had caught up with me. Maybe the afterlife was the dungeons of Malfoy Manor, a form of punishment for the mistakes I made in my previous life.

I had been so persistent in trying to keep Draco's secret, to keep him from You-Know-Who's wrath. However, in trying to save Draco, I feel as if I have only sacrificed the others around me. If only I would said something sooner, maybe we wouldn't be in this position. I squeezed my eyes against the tears that threatened to fall down my face.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps coming down the spiral stairs urged me to my feet. Robbie emerged from the shadows, holding a tray of what looked to be their left over breakfast. There were three plates, each with a small portion of scrambled eggs and half-eaten bagels. It wasn't much, but I scarfed it down almost immediately. Robbie stood there the whole time and watched me eat, amusement seemingly upon his features.

As I placed my plate through the tiny slot, he gripped my arm and pulled me against the raw, icy metal. My face collided with the iron bars with a loud bang, a wave of nausea rushing over me. I swayed within his heavy grip, a sharp pain blurring my vision.

"How did you survive that killing curse? Huh?" Robbie's voice was heavy, fused with anger so deep you could sink into it. His voice sent a ringing sensation in my ears that intensified the agonizing pain in my head.

"I don't know," I breathed.

"Let go of her!" I heard Lara shout, but Robbie hardly paid any attention to her or Blaise.

I couldn't look him in the eyes without feeling ill. I barely felt human at all.

"You're immortal, aren't you, Rosewood?" He spat between gritted teeth.

His face grew closer to mine, and I finally looked up at him. I could see all the wrinkles that outlined his face, the strands of gray that stuck out from the rest of his hair. His eyes were like switch blades, cutting into me to find all my secrets. His other hand rose to his side, slowly reaching towards me through the iron bars. I was too paralyzed to break free, almost believing I was under the Imperio Curse again. I observed as his eyes traveled from my face to the necklace that rested on my collarbone.

"Nice necklace," Robbie whispered, his voice rough as stone. "Mind if take it?"

I had no time to process anything, no time to brace myself. Once his fingers came into the slightest contact with the heart-shaped pendant, a shock of green shot through him. Robbie fell to the ground with a harsh thud, lying lifeless on the concrete.

I took a step back, only feeling a brief moment of relief before a wave of shock hit me.

"Oh no," Lara spoke through the eerie silence.

Her voice startled me, and I noticed for the first time that she and Blaise were on their feet. Several minutes pass, and we all began to grow uncomfortable as Robbie was still lying on the floor. I kept checking to make sure he was really dead, though there was no doubt in my mind.

Then, I heard footsteps again.

I leaned against the back wall as far as possible from Draco and Jane as they approached our cells. Jane's gaze drifted to her husband lying against my cell in a messy heap of limbs. She slowly knelt down beside Robbie, checked his pulse, then rose back to her feet. Nobody dared to move or make the slightest sound. The tension in the room was brewing. Her eyes met mine.

"Did you do this?" Jane stared at me, her voice low and ice-cold.

I hurriedly shook my head no. Before Jane could look to Lara and Blaise, they were also shaking their heads. She then moved Robbie on his back, feeling around in his coat and pants for (I assumed) his wand. However, he did not have his wand on him.

"How is this possible?" Jane's voice was barely audible, but I couldn't feel any amount of pity for her.

She raised her voice. "One of you did something! I know it!"

She pointed her wand back and forth amongst the three of us. I held up my hands in defense, but there was nothing I could do to block a spell. I was defenseless, vulnerable.

"Crucio!"

I wasn't sure I was myself after Jane shouted that abominable curse. I slid down the wall and crumbled into a ball, screams and shouts filling the air which were distorted to my ears. I couldn't tell who was screaming, or maybe it was all me. My insides were squeezing together, my heart beating in reverse. Then it stopped, but the curse lingered as if I were recovering from a terrible nightmare. It hurt to breathe. It hurt to do anything.

"You know I could kill you right now, Holly," she scowled at me. "But the Dark Lord has ordered us to keep you alive. He believes you will come around for whatever reason."

Maybe I had to become a Death Eater to spare my life. Surely Voldemort wouldn't just let me stay alive without a sacrifice. (At this point, I didn't care if saying his name summoned him in my cell. I am done with this.)

"Or I'll join Kasper, right?" I managed to let out, my tone outlined with bitterness.

I had not known what came over me, but I guess all my cares to live had left me in that moment.

Surprisingly, Jane said nothing to this. She broke eye contact with me, something flashing in her expression. She turned to Draco.

"You wait here and make sure they don't do anything," she ordered Draco. "I'm going to alert the others about Robbie."

Then she left the room.

Blaise kicked the iron bars of his cell which rattled under his impact. "Let us out of here!"

Draco hardly appeared phased, or maybe he was just good at hiding it.